review – Page 8 – Jellybeans in the City

Sweetly decadent dipped strawberries from Fruiquet

I came home to a sweet birthday surprise: a box of 12 Dipped Strawberries Supreme from Fruiquet, sent by the boss! (Note: what a way to make one feel valued, hint hint hint to other bosses out there!)

Each strawberry was huge, three times bigger than the ones we usually find in local groceries (I heard Fruiquet sources these from the US), and dipped in smooth semi-sweet or white chocolate with decorative swirls that give the berries a festive and appetizing presentation. Each bite produces a burst of sweetness in my mouth, luscious and fruity from the strawberry and rich and decadent from the chocolate.

And since great things become even better when enjoyed with loved ones, I shared the box of succulent goodies with my family during my birthday get-together.

Dipped strawberries are just a sampling of Fruiquet’s innovative fruit gift offerings. Its main products are fruit bouquets wherein fresh fruits are cut and moulded into visually appealing edible arrangements which have the bonus attributes of being edible, yummy and healthy to boot! The arrangements can be further customized by including fun accessories like personalized cards, plush teddy bears, foil balloons and even red, white or sparkling wine.

Fruit bouquets are great gifts for almost any type of occasion. For example, you can give an arrangement with a plush teddy to congratulate a couple on the birth of their new bundle of joy.

You can gift your special someone a bouquet of fresh and dipped strawberries, melon balls and pineapple flowers as an anniversary gift.

You can bring a big basket of cut fruits as your contribution to a potluck party.

Or you can have a mug of cheery cut fruit wedges delivered as a get-well gift to someone feeling under the weather.

You can order your fruity treats from Fruiquet’s stores, via phone or online.

Quezon City branch: 221-D Katipunan Ave., Project 4, QC (Tel: 02-7945999)
Makati branch: Bridgeway, 3F Dela Rosa Carpark 2 (beside Balai Pandesal) (Tel: 02-9459999)
Website: www.fruiquet.com

Try to place your order a day or two in advance to give the store ample time to prepare the arrangement.

If you are the lucky one who received a fruit arrangement, it’s best to consume it within a day since, as you know, fruits are best when fresh.

Note: Photos here (aside from the yummy dipped strawberries) were taken from the Fruiquet website.

Katsu Adventure at Katsu Sora, Trinoma

I have long been a fan of the katsu.

There’s quite a gastronomic appeal to a juicy piece of pork, breaded and fried such that the outside is crispy while the inside is tender and flavorful.

So here lies the reason why I found myself, along with some of my coworkers (the usual suspects when it comes to foodie lunch adventures, to be honest), traveling quite some distance from the office to Trinoma Mall to dine at Katsu Sora.

I have frequented this Japanese resto’s branches in Greenhills and Eastwood, but it’s my first time to eat at its Trinoma branch.

I booked a table for four using the Zomato app’s online booking function. Five of us actually arrived but the hostess was able to accommodate all of us. Katsu Sora is in the same section as MochiCream and Hokkaido Ramen Santouka but has a distinct separate space, marked by a spacious and well-lit dining area.

The wait staff are attentive and helpful in assisting our group with our requests and queries about the menu.

My go-to order is the Mille Feuille Set (Php360). The star of the show for this meal is the lean but tender and savory Canadian pork, sliced ultra-thin, layered together, covered with panko then deep-fried to a crispy golden brown, superbly complemented by sweet tonkatsu sauce. It’s cast of supporting flavors consist of unlimited Japanese rice, a salad bar (from which I can eat a combination of egg and potato salad, shredded cabbage and corn kernels doused with creamy wasabi and sesame dressing to my heart’s content) and refillable miso soup.

All these make for a wonderful fusion of flavors that leave me thankful for simple pleasures such as this.

This branch of Katsu Sora is located at Fourth Floor, Trinoma Mall, Bagong Pag-Asa, Quezon City.

All-day Brunch at AM:PM Brunch. Bar. Cafe. in Tomas Morato

A new resto just opened along Sgt. Esguerra Street – AM:PM Brunch Bar. Bar. Cafe.

Brunch, a portmanteau of breakfast and lunch, is a meal usually eaten late in the morning to early afternoon, sometimes with some alcoholic beverages.

AM:PM’s menu includes of All Day Brunch items, main dishes, pizza, sandwiches, as well as coffee- and non-coffee-based beverages. It also offers beers, and liquors by the shot or by the bottle. It recently started offering budget meals ranging from Php120 to Php145.

I went here a couple of times with some coworkers for lunch and I was able to sample some of its offerings:

Homemade Bacon Slab (Php260), served with garlic rice, fried egg and iced tea. While a filling meal, I was a bit disappointed with its portioning. I was expecting a huge slab of bacon but what I got was more like bacon strips. It could also use some more salt.

Crispy Chicken Skin (Php90), not a wise choice after eating bacon, but, you know, #YOLO. 🙂

T-bone Steak (Php400), served with fried egg and mashed potato. The portion was quite sizeable. I split my order into two: I ate one half over lunch and the other half later at dinner and still felt full. I’m not too crazy about the mashed potato’s balsamic dressing, though.

I’m still open to eating here for lunch but I might be opting for the budget meals.

AM:PM Brunch. Bar. Cafe. is located at The Ignacia Place, Sgt. Esguerra St. cor Mother Ignacia Avenue, Quezon City.

Great flavors at Vitto’s Wine Bar & Restaurant

I’m not much of a drinker. Actually, I’m not a drinker. Period.

You would think a non-tippler would have found little to appreciate in Vitto’s Wine Bar & Restaurant, but there I was with my officemates during lunchtime, marveling at the resto’s Instagrammable minimalist organic-themed aesthetic and its unusual and yet comforting food offerings.

This hole-in-the-wall establishment may seem small but its warmly lit and quite cozy. It’s unique style manifested in the old Latin saying prominently displayed in one of its walls – “In vino veritas; in cervesio felisitas” or “In wine there is truth; in beer there is happiness,” definitely a mantra among its patrons who have high regard for their spirits.

Our group of four were the only ones there. Our lone wait staff – RJ – was attentive, prompt in assisting requests and knowledgeable about the resto’s food choices.

I ordered a Salted Egg Pasta (Php250), spaghetti noodles with a creamy salted egg sauce and topped with bacon bits. It was a hit among our group but I would suggest splitting this order with someone; the sauce is quite rich and strongly flavored, and the dish is heavy on the tummy.

I was also able to try out my companions’ orders:

The Grilled Meat Chop (Php290), one of Vitto’s All Day Brunch meals, consisted of two hefty pork chops, well-seasoned to bring out their smoky taste, and well complemented by garlic rice and sautéed veggies. I will order this on my next visit.

The Potato Croquettes with Blue Cheese Mayo (Php190), on the other hand, had the problem of having a bland-tasting mashed potato base, we needed to further season it with salt.

Lastly, the Citrus Fish Fillet (Php220) consisted of two fillets of baked cream dory marinated in lemon. Its light taste and mild texture were well complemented by its rich butter sauce. It went well with the garlic rice my officemate requested as a replacement to its usual side of mashed potato.

While its wine list wouldn’t really appeal to me, Vitto’s food menu is definitely something I wouldn’t mind exploring.

Vitto’s Wine Bar & Restaurant is located at 114 Scout Lozano Street, Laging Handa, QC.

Work-related hang-out at UCC Park Cafe, Glorietta Complex

Whenever I’m Ayala Center and I pass by this free standing resto amidst the park greenery, I always thought of it would be a great place to hang out in after a bout of shopping.

So far, I haven’t been able to just chill here as during both instances I’ve been are work-related.

Still, I have been able to try its sandwich offerings:

Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Php280). Three different kinds of cheese (cheddar, gruyere and mozarella) on buttered toast.

Cliffhanger Sandwich (Php250). Chicken, bacon, scrambled eggs, mozarella cheese inside fried custard-coated bread.

I didn’t care much for the side of marinara sauce that came with the sandwiches but I found the sandwiches themselves rich and filling.

The Cafe Americano (Php120) gave me a good pick-me-up. The muscovado sugar gave it a different kind of sweetness.

Thanks to my generous workmates, I was able to sample its other dishes:

Pasta Carbonara (Php260). Spaghetti noodles in a white sauce with sauteed bacon and onions, topped with a poached egg and parmesan cheese. I found this pasta a little too wet for my taste.

Garlic Seafood Pasta (Php450). Spaghetti noodles with shrimp, cuttlefish, mushrooms and scallops sauteed in garlic and olive oil. This seems to be a light and more preferable alternative to heavily sauced pasta dishes.

Crispy Wings (Php320). Fried marinated chicken wings served with garlic dip and fries. A bit forgettable but at least I got some more meat to go with my sandwich at the time.

I wouldn’t mind coming back to try out some of its more unusual food items such as its Cheese and Spinach (Php280) appetizer and Pulled Pork Grilled Cheese (Php320).

This UCC branch is located at Glorietta 3 Park, Ayala Center, Makati.

Two generations of viewpoints on “Friends,” now on Netflix

For many Gen Xers, the TV show Friends defined an era, our era.

The show started airing in September 1994, during my last year in high school.

Netflix all ten seasons just this month, January 2018, coincidentally my teenage daughter’s last year in high school.

To me back then, the show served as a special preview of “the world out there,” i.e., adult life. For my daughter, with whom I watched some episodes, it serves as a point of conparison between the issues she faces today and those I faced during my formative years.

The story kicked off when spoiled “daddy’s girl” Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) runs out of her wedding and (while still in her wedding dress) goes looking for her high school best friend (Monica Geller).

Monica, despite having lost contact with Rachel after high school, good-heatedly welcomed her into her home and into the gang composed of Monica’s brother Ross (David Schwimmer) who was traumatized by his divorce from his wife who turned out to be a lesbian, the boys who live across the hall Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry) who was Ross’ roommate in college and struggling actor Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc), and Monica’s cooky ex-roommate Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow).

Throughout the show’s ten-season run, the six friends navigated their way through life in New York City: found and lost jobs, started and ended relationships, and found and reinvented themselves.

While today, my daughter and her peers found the show’s jokes about “Fat Monica,” homosexual relationships and transgender identity problematic, back then, I was amazed these themes were being shown at all.

I was inspired by Monica’s transformation from an obese teen to a slim and confident chef (and I’m still perplexed as to how she was able to maintain her size despite being constantly surounded by food).

I found the decision of Ross’ ex-wife to raise their child with her lesbian partner, and later Rachel’s to be a working unwed mother brave.

I understood Chandler’s resentment of his father Charles’ transition to Helena Handbasket; after all, the announcement of her separation from Chandler’s mom was done after Thanksgiving dinner when Chandler was nine, hardly the epitome of sensitivity to the child’s sensibilities.

Despite the differences in the lenses that we view this iconic show, some themes are constant: the importance of friendship, acceptance of oneself and others, and growing up.

Ramen Choices at Ramen Nagi, Robinsons Galleria

Newsflash: I’m still in my ramen phase and the poor fam has no choice but to bear with me and my food choices.

That said, I don’t think they were too disappointed when we recently had our Saturdate lunch at Ramen Nagi at Robinsons Galleria.

Located at The Veranda, Level 2 of Robinsons Galleria, this ramen shop provides a unique experience to the ramen lover: the ability to customize your ramen experience.

You are given the choice of broth flavors: Butao King (its signature tonkotsu pork broth at Php390), Black King (broth infused with squid ink at Php410), Red King (the spiciest broth at Php 410) and Green King (broth infused with Nagi at P410).

From there, you can specify the following:

Richness of the taste
Inclusion of Ramen Nagi’s special sauce
Garlic taste
Pork Shoulder or Belly
Level of Spiciness, and
Firmness of the noodles

If you’re a ramen newbie like me, go for the chef’s recommendation (because he or she should know what tastes good, right?), but go easy on the spiciness, especially if you’re not much into heat.

I would also recommend adding a Tamago (Php60), a flavored egg that provides more richness to the ramen.

My daughter and I got ourselves bowls of Butao King, while the husband got himself a bowl of Red King. The little boy, on the other hand (being the only one who is not into ramen), had to content himself with an order of Chicken Karaage (Japanese fried chicken at Php250), which, sadly, he didn’t enjoy as much as the rest of us enjoyed our ramen bowls.

We also ordered a side of Gyoza (Php220) and a sheet of Nori (Php60) to nibble on while waiting for our order.

The service staff were attentive and helpful, prompt to answer our queries and assist our requests.

By the way, this year, birthday celebrants get free Butao King Ramen during their birth month. Remember, though, that you can only avail of this promo once (even though the originally announced mechanics indicated otherwise – a friend discovered this the hard, and apparently embarassing, way).

You can also check out my review of Ramen Nagi at SM North EDSA.

Grimm Season 6 now streaming on Netflix

At last! After nearly a year of waiting, the final season of Grimm is now streaming on Netflix here in the Philippines!

I have faithfully followed this show since it started in 2011, never missing an episode despite work or family obligations. As can be gleaned from the fangirlish tone of various episode recaps I found myself posting, it’s safe to say that I have a (hopefully!) mild obsession for this show. I guess that Grimm can be considered one of my guilty pleasures.

When its final episode aired on March 31 last year, I was almost heart-broken. I knew I would be missing Nick Burkhardt’s (mis)adventures as well as those of his Wesen and human friends. I was overjoyed to discover that Seasons 1 to 5 are available on Netflix and lost no time binge-watching the series every chance I got.

For those who are not familiar with the series, Grimm is a TV show that originally aired on NBC in the US (Universal Channel on SKYcable in the Philippines). It basically consists of modern retellings of the Brothers Grimm fairytales as well as folklore and mythical stories from varied cultures.

The show follows the adventures of Portland police detective Nicholas Burkhardt (played by David Giuntoli) just as he finds out that he is among the line of Grimms, a special breed of humans with the ability to detect Wesen, or supernatural beings. Grimms are tasked to maintain the balance between humanity and Wesen, and oftentimes, Grimms have taken brutal measures against the creatures, making them highly feared in the Wesen community. Nick’s role as a Grimm is further complicated by his being a cop; while he is usually able to meld his duties to both roles, there are times when he has to choose which dictates to follow.

He is aided by a strong cast of supporting characters such as Monroe (his last name was never revealed, played by Silas Weir Mitchell), his Wieder Blutbad (reformed werewolf) BFF, his cop buddies Hank Griffin (played by Russell Hornsby) and Drew Wu (played by kababayan Reggie Lee) and his love interests/nemeses Juliette Silverton (played by Bitsie Tulloch) and Adalind Schade (played by Claire Coffee).

Its setting in Portland, Oregon is also very on-point. Its verdant forests, mild climate and slogan “Keep Portland Weird” provided a lush background for the supernatural situations the characters found themselves dealing with.

I love how this show is able to adapt fairytales and myths into modern situations, influenced not just by Germanic folklore (from which most of the Brothers Grimms’ stories are collected from) but also by other cultures such as Latin American (“La Llorona” and “El Cucuy“), Native American (“Wendigo“), Egyptian (“Anubis“), and, of course, the one closest to my heart, Filipino (“Aswang“).

The show had a few faults, such as the wonky special effects involved in showing how the Wesen morph from their human forms to their mythological forms and vice versa, as well as convoluted side plots involving a European Royal Family and a set of keys passed down from the Knights Templar. I also consider Juliette’s journey to the dark side and killing of a pivotal character the show’s “jumping the shark” moment, as it weakened part of the show’s heart.

Still, what kept me tuned in were the depictions of Nick’s rich and nuanced relationships with his Wesen and human allies. His “bromance” with Monroe, in particular, grew from a reluctant partnership to a deep and abiding friendship that enabled Nick and Monroe to oftentimes defy the dictates of their natures to help each other.

Grimm has been a part of my TV habit for seven years and it left quite a big void: I haven’t found a new series that comes close to its appeal to me.

Until then, I will satisfy myself with watching and re-watching this series on Netflix.